Ride the rails with Santa

The Placerville and Sacramento Valley Railroad (P&SVRR) pays tribute to America’s service men and women and their families this holiday season with a special active military rate of only $5 per person to anyone with a valid current military ID card. Regular fare is $15 per person for children and adults ages 3 and older and includes a private meeting and photo with Santa.
“It’s not a far reach for me to understand what military families are going through during the holidays. I have three young children — 7, 5 and 4 — with a husband who is a military contractor currently deployed in Kuwait. Because of his contracts, we have not had him home during the holidays for four years,” said Michelle Gallegos, a volunteer at the Placerville and Sacramento Valley Railroad. “The holidays can be a wonderful time for families to gather, reconnect and celebrate. But for families experiencing a military separation, the holidays can also be a harsh reminder that their loved one is not home.”
Gallegos said she
“I literally found the railroad in an effort to keep me and my children busy on the weekends and our minds off ‘daddy’ being gone. Now our train ride tradition has grown into a volunteer effort that my children and I enjoy participating,” she said. “It’s my hope that our Santa Train rides this holiday season can offer active military families and their little ones that same sense of joy that I have come to love. And, you bet our picture with Santa will be mailed overseas too.”
Meet Santa and ride the train in Shingle Springs, Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 3-4 at the Depot at 4241 Mother Lode Drive, and in Folsom, Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 10-11 and 17-18 at E. Bidwell and Oak Avenue (at California Family Fitness), from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Trains run approximately every 30 minutes.
Round trip fares are $15 per person for children and adults 3 years and older and $5 per person 3 years to anyone with a valid current military ID card.
For more information, call The Placerville & Sacramento Valley Railroad at (916) 990-3653 or visit psvrr.org.